纽约时报 “中国是同等的竞争者”

国防部长盖茨5日直接观察现代中国两个最惊人的方面。一是五角大楼官员所说的中国武装力量强势进取的现代化。另一方面是它甚至更为强势扩张的经济和全球地位。

　　成为国防部长后首次访华的盖茨表示，中国日益增长的政治和经济地位要求这个国家为国际体系的健康和成功承担更大的责任。

　　盖茨和中国国防部长曹刚川一并出席新闻会，他表示他已经提出“关于中国军事现代化的不确定性，以及加大透明度以减轻国际忧虑的必要性。”

　　五角大楼官员把中国描述为“同等的竞争者（peer competitor）”——几乎不能说是敌手（adversary），常常是伙伴（partner），然而不是可靠的、亲密的盟友（ally）。国防部长之旅意在培育这种复杂的关系，敦促更开放的军事沟通。预计两天的会谈不会有政策的大突破。

　　盖茨表示讨论既有协议有分歧。双方宣布新措施以建立热线避免两国军方误解。五角大楼高级官员认为这意义重大，他们表示中国政府和任何其他国家都没有这样的热线。

　　盖茨和他的对应人物还宣布同意组织新的海军联合演习；军事学生交流计划；承诺开放中国档案帮助解决在朝鲜战争失踪的美国士兵的问题。

　　当被要求回应美国对军事和扩张的批评，中国国防部长曹刚川回答说这是中国军队在自己领土上的正常部署。

　　盖茨承认，关于中国在1月不经宣布就试验反卫星武器，摧毁中国一颗老化的气象卫星，他在要求中国人提供答案方面没能取得什么进展。西方政府敦促解释，但中国政府用了近两周才公开确认该试验，并表示它没有计划进行太空竞赛。这种情况以及试验的动机令人担忧，这种忧虑如今仍然存在。

　　盖茨表示，“我提出我们对此的关切，但没有更进一步的讨论。”

　　盖茨还表示他向中国人提出加大压力以说服伊朗停止任何发展核武的计划的重要性。

　　中国和伊朗的经济关系日益加深。据随同盖茨访华的高级五角大楼官员表示，在5日的会晤期间，中国官员表示明白国家追求稳定的能源供应以为经济提供动力的目标可能受到中东核扩散的威胁。一位匿名的高级官员认为中国官员已经同意“一个核伊朗是我们联合反对的事物。”（原标题：盖茨在中国的军事会谈；作者：THOM SHANKER）


Gates Questions China on Military Growth

BEIJING, Nov. 5 — Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates looked directly on Monday into two of the most striking facets of modern China.

One is what Pentagon officials say is China’s aggressive modernization of its armed forces. The other is its even more aggressive expansion of the economy and its growing global role.

“China’s increasing political and economic stature calls for this country to take on a greater share of responsibility for the health and success of the international system,” said Mr. Gates, who is making his first visit to China since becoming defense secretary.

Mr. Gates, standing alongside Gen. Cao Gangchuan, China’s defense minister, at a news conference, also said he had raised “the uncertainty over China’s military modernization and the need for greater transparency to allay international concerns.”

Pentagon officials describe China as a “peer competitor” — hardly an adversary, often a partner, yet not a reliable, close ally. The defense secretary’s visit was intended to nurture this complex relationship and press for more open communication over military issues. No major breakthroughs on policy issues were expected during two days of talks, which will conclude Tuesday after a meeting with Hu Jintao, the Chinese president.

Mr. Gates said his discussions were marked by agreements and disagreements. The two sides announced new steps toward establishing a telephone hot line to avert misunderstandings between their militaries. This was viewed as significant by senior Pentagon officials, who said the Chinese government did not have such a line with any other nation.

Mr. Gates and his counterparts also announced an agreement to organize a new joint naval exercise, larger and more complex than previous exercises; a plan to exchange military students; and a promise to open Chinese archives to help account for American soldiers still listed as missing from the Korean War.

When asked to respond to American criticisms of the military and expansion, General Cao, the defense minister, replied, “It has been a normal deployment of our military force in our own territory.”

Mr. Gates acknowledged that he had made little headway in getting answers from the Chinese on their unannounced test of an antisatellite weapon in January, in which they destroyed an aging Chinese weather satellite. Western governments pressed for an explanation, but the Chinese government took nearly two weeks to publicly confirm the test and to say it had no plans for a space race. Worries over the circumstances and motive of the test remain.

“I raised our concerns about it, and there was no further discussion,” Mr. Gates said.

Mr. Gates also said he had raised with his Chinese hosts “the importance of increased pressures” to persuade Iran to drop any plans to develop nuclear weapons.

China has growing economic ties with Iran. During Monday’s meetings, Chinese officials expressed an understanding that the nation’s goal of steady energy supplies to power its economy could be threatened by nuclear proliferation in the Middle East, according to senior Pentagon officials traveling with Mr. Gates.

One senior official, speaking on standard diplomatic rules of anonymity to describe the private talks, said late Monday that Chinese officials had agreed that “a nuclear-armed Iran is something we are united in opposing.”

侨报 中国售伊歼-10谣言背后

俄罗斯《生意人报》10月23日报道， 购买以色列战机的伊朗航空公司代表称，中国将在2008年至2010年间完成向伊朗提供两个大队（24架）歼-10战机的合同。专家估算，这种战机单价约4000万美元，合同总金额约10亿美元。

　　中国外交部发言人刘建超随后澄清：中国将向伊朗出售歼-10战斗机的报道不实。

　　刊登不实报道的《生意人报》背景引人关注，其前老板是逃往西方的俄罗斯富翁别列佐夫斯基。此后该报虽被俄天然气公司购买， 但其亲西方态度没有改变。所以，笔者认为，制造谣言的并非俄罗斯，而是西方的某些军火大国。

　　随着中国的影响日益显著，其军事工业水平也日益引起外界关注，一些国家开始担忧中国军事威胁。目前，排在世界军火市场前几位的销售大国是美、俄、英、法、德、以、中。根据美国国会研究服务局发表的《常规武器交易》报告， 2006年全球常规武器交易总值288亿美元，美国占36%（约104亿美元），排在第一位， 中国占3%（约8.5亿美元），排在第五位。军火大国已逐渐意识到中国的影响，而且， 军火商们很明白， 一旦中国出售战机， 不但会影响他们的市场份额， 还将打乱其苦心经营的国际军售网络。

　　歼-10是一种高性能战机， 长于争夺制空权，兼具对地攻击能力。与之比肩的是美国的F-16、俄罗斯的米格-29以及法国的“阵风”。相比而言，歼-10的机动能力较好，空战时有一定优势。在执行国土防空、空战格斗、陆海空联合攻击等任务时有上乘表现。一旦中国外销，亚洲、欧洲或拉美的一些国家可能会基于性价比考虑，选择歼-10而抵制美俄战机。歼-10的横空出世， 让称霸世界军火市场的大国感到紧张，于是他们不得不想出一些小伎俩， 制造谣言就是招数之一。

　　其实， 假新闻的后面还有阴谋。报道后不久， 以色列《耶路撒冷邮报》10月26日引述以国防部一位官员的话说，“为扼制伊朗日益发展的军力，美国同意最快于2012年向以色列出售两个大队（约24架）的F-35战斗机”。可以看出， 美国借中国将向伊朗出售歼-10战机以佐证伊朗军力壮大， 其实是为自己向中东亲美国家倒卖军火找借口。

　　这很符合一个规律， 一些军火商在大规模对外出售武器之前， 往往会事先炮制各种各样的“威胁论”。典型地，美国为给中东亲美国家卖武器，每隔一段时间就会炮制“战争即将来临”的威言。最近，白宫上下又在鼓噪攻打伊朗， 想必也有出于军售的考虑。

　　综上，基于商业与安全利益的复杂组合，基于中国军力越来越强大，军火商们制造各种怪诞谣言的动机一点就破。 （作者 陶功财 系自由撰稿人）